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Alexandre Travassos
Biography
Alexandre Fracalanza Travassos (b. 1970, Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian composer, clarinetist and conductor.
Travassos moved to São Paulo at the age of ten where he began to study the clarinet at the São Paulo Municipal School of Music and later at the School of Communication and Arts of the São Paulo University. Among his teachers are Rafael Caro, Leonardo Righi, Otinilo Pacheco and Sergio Burgani. During his student years, Alexandre played at the Camerata Paulista, the São Paulo State Youth Orchestra and the Orquestra Experimental de Repertório.
Following a life-long passion, Alexandre emerged as a self-taught composer, writing his first compositions for solo instruments and small chamber groups. Later he had lessons with composer and director Aylton Escobar, Douglas Seville, Carla Rees and Patrick Standford. In 1994, he performed as clarinetist with the São Paulo State Symphonic Band, an ensemble that inspired his first large scale work: Abertura dramática, winner of the 1º Composition Contest for Symphonic Band sponsored by the São Paulo State Symphonic Band and later recorded on the CD Suite Tropical. From this moment on, Alexandre collaborated actively with the group, composing, transcribing and arranging music for them. Among the music premiered by the São Paulo State Symphonic Band are Danças do autômato, Rapsódia sefaradi, Opus lascivus and The Golem.
Alexandre has been recognized for his works through the many awards he has received in Brazil and abroad. These include the Penfield Commission Project (USA, 2001), the 3rd Guerra-Peixe Composition Prize for Orchestra (2001), the Outdoor Composition Contest (USA, 2010), the Otto-Ditscher-Preis (Germany, 2011) and the Classical Composition FUNARTE Prizes of 2011 and 2016. His music has been performed at venues in Brasil, United States, Spain, Portugal, Netherlands and Japan.
In 2014, Alexandre became woodwind orchestral teacher of the student orchestras of the Municipal Theater of São Paulo Foundation. To them, he dedicated his piece Aurora Australis, premiered in 2016.
Works for Winds
- A captura do Saci-Pereré (2002)
- Abertura dramática (2001)
- Abertura metropolitana
- Aurora australis (2016)
- Danças do autômato
- Naturezas Mortas
- O Golem
- Opus lascivus
- Rapsódia sefaradi
- Reuben Min
- Variações sobre La Folia de Espagna
Resources
- Alexandre Travassos website Accessed 22 August 2017